Youth in Ferguson: "I want more for my city than what it is now"

Tanesha Nesbitt and Terran Tippett across the street from where Michael Brown was killed

Austin FederaKBIA

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7:50

KBIA reporters speak with young people in Ferguson, Mo. on August 14, 2014.

As demonstrations continue in Ferguson Missouri in response to the killing of 18-year-old Michael Brown, youth in the community are grappling with what is happening in their community. A team of KBIA reporters on Thursday went to the apartment complex where Brown was shot five days earlier to have conversations with young people about the past and future of their town.

A community memorial in the street where Michael Brown was shot and killed

Credit Austin Federa / KBIA

Two of the young people we spoke with were Paris Stanley, a 19 year old lifeguard, and 20 year old Ryan Addision, both of Ferguson. They spoke with us about day-to-day life in Ferguson before the shooting, and how the community has come together since.

NOTE: In some of the following interviews, you will hear allegations of specific illegal activities. KBIA has not contacted the entities involved to confirm or deny the allegations, but decided to instead present the raw interviews as they were gathered in the field.

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7:34

Our full interview with Paris Stanley, a 19 year old lifeguard from Ferguson, and 20 year old Ryan Addison, also of Ferguson

"You can see the guilt powered up in the faces of those who know this is not right. But they don’t have the heart or the courage to speak for it cause they scared. The police officers on the force are scared, the ones who come forwards they scared to come forwards because they scared of the other ones. How you scared of your own kind? You know what I’m saying? Nobody’s equal here."

Tanesha Nesbitt lives in the apartment unit across the street from where Michael Brown was shot. She and Terran Tippett sat on their steps holding a homemade sign, "R.I.P. Mike Brown." She recalled with us the day of the shooting, and her experience in its aftermath.

But we go through this every day, we get profiled just even by living in this area, it's like now what do you do?